Football shares Europe's values of integration, solidarity and social inclusion, and can play a significant role in helping the EU to promote them, especially at the local level where clubs are part of their local communities, UEFA president Michel Platini told the plenary session of the Committee of the Regions.

The Maltese delegation to the Committee of the Regions, led by Local Councils Association president Michael Cohen, met Michel Platini during the meeting. The delegation also includes LCA vice-president Claudette Abela Baldacchino, Joe Cordina and Samuel Azzopardi as members and Doris Borg as alternate member.

"In the world of football, being picked for your national team or playing in a European tournament is seen as the pinnacle, but in the end you play in your local team, the one you grew up with," said Platini, underlining the importance of the local level to the 'beautiful game'. "The European sporting model…relies heavily on the support of local communities at every level, and especially at the amateur level."

2010 is the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion, and Platini stressed the role of football in particular in helping to tackle these issues. "Football is about integration, inclusion, giving support and offering a welcome," he said, giving the example of the children of immigrants often finding a common interest with their host country on the football field far more than in the school room. "In many cases, football is a far more effective driver of integration than school or social services, and it is football which gives young people their identities."